The Mistake
by KristinLeAnn252
Summary: Stefan catches Elena and Damon in bed together.
1. Chapter 1

Title: The Mistake

Description: Stefan catches Elena and Damon in bed together and Elena immediately covers and tells Stefan it was a mistake. He believes her and things go back to normal but does Elena really believe it was a mistake?

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Vampire Diaries books or TV show. However, I do own the first four books and will own the season one dvds as soon as they come out :) Also, it would make my entire life to meet Ian Somerhalder. He's just amazing :) [just thought I'd throw that out there]

Spoilers? Maybe. Probably. Although, there shouldn't be for you, because you've seen all 22 episodes, correct? Yes, I thought so ;) This is post finale

Warning: Character death (but no worries, it's not Elena, Damon, or Stefan :)

A/N: So this was going to be a one shot but I am now on page four of a word document and have about 2000 words and the story has barely started so it is now going to be a multi-chapter fic :)

Chapter One:

Elena Gilbert had always considered herself a strong, independent woman. However, as she was driving to the Salvatore boarding house now, she felt as though she would crack into millions of pieces and never be able to be put back together again. Yes, she had gone through so much in her life already after losing her parents two short years ago and then losing her brother Jeremy a year ago. Although, she didn't lose Jeremy in the typical way one would assume; she lost him when he left Mystic Falls after turning himself into a vampire. Stefan and Damon both assured her it was for her own good. Jeremy was angry and hurt by Elena before he turned which only made him more of a threat towards her after he turned and his emotions were on high alert.

Elena would always remember the day she discovered Jeremy, lifeless, in his bed. For a few minutes, she had completely forgotten the existence of vampires and sometimes thinking back, she is ashamed of this. Seeing her brother in his bed, she thought he would never open his eyes again. She sat next to him for hours crying before going to their Jack and Jill bathroom to splash her face with water and think of what to do next. It was only after she entered the bathroom that she noticed her empty painkiller prescription bottle and an empty vile, lined with blood lying on the marble countertop.

Suddenly, everything came back to her as she fell to the cold bathroom floor – Stefan, Damon, Vicki, Anna, her birth mother, Isobel, the tomb vampires, everything. It was at this point that Elena realized Jeremy didn't want to be gone forever, but instead the opposite. He wanted this. What would she do when Jeremy woke up? She knew Stefan and Damon would know so she immediately called them. They ended up taking Jeremy back to the boarding house where he stayed for a month before the three of them came to the conclusion he couldn't stay in Mystic Falls any longer. The first month after he left, Elena hated Stefan and Damon for trying to tell her it was for the best. She hated them for making her lie to everyone and say Jeremy was depressed and ran away from home. Even though that was as close to the truth as anything, that didn't help to settle her. It wasn't until six months after he left that Elena finally believed him leaving was for the best. It was hard for her to say which brother convinced her. She would like to say it was Stefan, her loving and faithful boyfriend, but she knew in her heart that Damon, the sarcastic and passionate one did just as much to convince her.

The past six months had been going great for Elena. Her relationship with Stefan was as strong as ever as was her friendship with Damon. She could say it was a perfect situation, if not for the constant jealousy and overprotection from Stefan, always concerned with why she hung around with Damon and why she cared for him. She understood where he was coming from, knowing about what had happened with Katherine so many years before, but she also became angry at times, wondering why he couldn't just trust her. Didn't he realize he was unintentionally pushing her away? She loved him though, which is why she continued to allow it. He was, after all, the perfect boyfriend.

She recalled all of this now as she drove to the boarding house. She knew as soon as she arrived, Stefan would know she was there and already have her wrapped in his strong and protective arms before she even had time to knock on the door. He would carry her to the couch and sit down next to her and just wrap his arms around her while softly whispering "Everything is going to be okay Elena" in her ear. He would tend to her every need and do anything and everything to make sure she was as comfortable and happy as possible. She knew this because he loved her, more than he had ever loved anyone in his entire undead life.

Elena found herself smiling for the first time all week as she pulled into the long Salvatore driveway. However, when she reached the door, no one opened it and pulled her into a hug as she originally thought would happen. "He's probably just busy reading... or brooding in his room and wasn't concentrating on someone coming to the door," Elena thought, trying to reassure herself. She knocked on the door twice before it opened and instead of seeing Stefan, it was Damon who opened the door.

"Why Hello Elena, what a lovely surprise. Sorry I took so long to get to the door, I was taking a shower," Damon said, smirking at the word shower.

Elena didn't speak for a moment as she ran her eyes over Damon's wet, towel clad body. She knew she shouldn't be doing it and yet it wasn't something she could prevent. There should really be laws against having a body like Damon's, not that he would care about laws though. Elena must have be oblivious as to how long she was staring at Damon because the next thing she heard was Damon saying "I know, I'm sexy," to which Elena snapped out of it in time to roll her eyes at his cocky, yet extremely accurate comment and ask if Stefan was home.

"Nope, Saint Stefan is off taking care of the overpopulation of woodland creatures. He left about twenty minutes ago but if you would like to come in and spend time with the sexy Damon Salvatore, he should be back in a few hours."

Elena chose not to respond to Damon's request and walked inside, going straight towards the couch where she planned to stay and wait for Stefan to come home and comfort her, as she had very well planned on the way over.

Damon sensed Elena wanted to be alone so he went to the kitchen to grab a glass of blood for himself and some Chamomile tea for Elena. When he came back into the living room with the two very different drinks, he felt his unbeating heart tug at the lost look on Elena's face. When had he started to care so much about her anyways? Was it not just a few weeks ago that his entire life was about getting Elena to be with him only to hurt Stefan? He knew this was not weeks, but over a year ago, but he still couldn't believe it. This girl meant everything to him, and there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.

"Elena? Here, I made you some tea."

Elena barely glanced up at him as she softly responded "tea?"

"Yes. Chamomile. It's good for calming and relaxation"

"When did you get so good at reading emotions?"

"Just yours." Damon responded, hesitating slightly before finishing "And I don't know."

Elena accepted the cup of tea and gave a soft, understanding smile to Damon letting him know she understood that he really didn't know and that was hard for him to admit.

Damon went to sit next to Elena on the couch and they both sat quietly and drank their respective beverages, the only communication being glances they made to one another every few minutes. They both finished their drinks at the same time and placed them on the coffee table in front of them. As they both relaxed back into the couch, Damon turned slightly in Elena's direction.

"Elena, what's wrong?"

"Damon, I have no idea what you're talking about. Nothing's wrong."

Damon then used two of his fingers to softly lift Elena's chin to look at him and repeated, "Elena. What is wrong?"

She had no idea why, but somehow, having Damon touch her, even the slightest, made her want to confess everything to him. Not just about what was wrong, but what she dreamed last night, what her strongest fear was, and what she had always dreamed of doing since she was a little girl. She knew she would tell him one way or another and now was as good of time as any.

"It's Aunt Jenna... she's dead."

Damon looked genuinely hurt as he asked, "What?"

"Five days ago I got home from school and found her collapsed in the kitchen. I called 911 but it was already too late. They said it was a brain aneurism. There would've been no symptoms other than headaches, which she probably just wrote off as stress. There was nothing no one could have done. I'm all alone, Damon. Everyone in my family is gone. My adoptive parents died in a car crash, my brother is gone, my birth mother is a vampire without an ounce of humanity and my father is alive but.. he's an ass so who cares. Everyone is gone, Damon." By this point, Elena had tears falling quickly.

Damon had never been good at comforting anyone but at this moment, he did the first thing that came to his mind. He placed his hands over hers and told her, "Elena, you are not alone. I'm here for you. I'll always be here for you."

She smiled and removed her hands from Damon's to pull him against her in a hug. "Thank you Damon, really. You have no idea how much that means to me."

Damon loved being able to hold Elena like this and wanted to do everything he could to comfort her. He absentmindedly began to stroke her hair as they both relaxed into the hug, leaning against the back of the couch. When he heard her softly moan, he quickly pulled away, knowing they were entering a dangerous territory. He refused to take advantage of her and as much as he hated to admit it, he wouldn't do that to his brother.


	2. Chapter 2

Title: The Mistake

Description: Stefan catches Elena and Damon in bed together and Elena immediately covers and tells Stefan it was a mistake. He believes her and things go back to normal but does Elena really believe it was a mistake?

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Vampire Diaries books or TV show. However, I do own the first four books and will own the season one dvds as soon as they come out :) Also, it would make my entire life to meet Ian Somerhalder. He's just amazing :) [just thought I'd throw that out there]

Spoilers? Maybe. Probably. Although, there shouldn't be for you, because you've seen all 22 episodes, correct? Yes, I thought so ;) This is post finale

A/N: Thanks to INLOVEWITHDAMON for pointing out my John Varvatos spelling mistake. It's kind of funny because I was thinking Varvatos and yet I wrote Barbados and started thinking about pirates... anyways, it's fixed now. :)

Chapter Two:

After pulling away, they each instantly began to miss the body heat but it was Elena who quickly stood and grabbed his arm to stop him.

"Damon,she called weakly.

He turned around at the sound of his name and saw something he wasn't sure of in Elena's brown eyes.

Elena wasn't sure what exactly came over her but before she had time to talk herself out of it, she stepped closer to him and pressed her soft lips to his cheek. Damon froze, unable to comprehend what was happening and why even when she pulled away, his cheek was tingling where her lips were only seconds before. Little did he know, she was having a similar conversation with herself about what had come over her and why her lips now tingled knowing how they felt on the smooth, cold skin of Damon Salvatore.

As if coming to the conclusion at the same time, they each looked in each others eyes and saw looks neither knew existed before this moment. Damon decided to test it to see what she would allow to happen and gently rubbed the back of his hand against her face. A smile crossed her face and he knew, somehow, despite everything, she felt everything he did. He removed his hand and replaced it with his lips on hers, giving her a quick peck. As soon as their lips touched, they each could've sworn they felt a spark of electricity.

This time after pulling away, it was Elena who pulled Damon's face back to hers. It was Elena's tongue who requested entrance into the surprisingly sweet mouth of the man in front of her. As their tongues battled, Elena wound her fingers through Damon's soft dark brown locks as he reciprocated with one hand in her hair and one holding her cheek, as if in disbelief she was really there.

It seemed as though hours passed before Elena grudgingly pulled away, only for the pure need of oxygen. When they looked at each other again, the looks of desire they saw were almost too much to stand. Damon knew what he wanted and as if she could hear his thoughts, Elena nodded slowly. They both knew he would not be holding back and that he would show her, rather than tell her exactly what she means to him.

Before Elena could thoroughly think about what exactly she had just agreed to, she felt her back hit a wall and she quickly assessed her surroundings and found them in Damon's bedroom, yet another thing vampire speed was good for. He gave her a passionate kiss on the lips before traveling to her neck and gently sucking, but not enough to lose control and expose his fangs. She had a fleeting thought that he was going to give her a hickey and their secret would be exposed but before she had time to fully process the thought, he had already lifted her top above her head leaving her in a black lace push up she had, ironically, bought for Stefan months before.

"Mmm my three favorite things... the color black, lace, and a push up bra

At Damon's statement, Elena began to feel a pang of guilt wondering if she had really bought the bra for Stefan after all. Damon was right, these are his favorite things, not Stefan's. Stefan loved to see her in bright colors and subtle prints, not black lace.

Her thoughts were quickly replaced by moans when Damon began palming her breasts together through her bra, squeezing them together and adding extra cleavage. Each time he pressed them together, her bra slipped off a little more until her breasts were completely exposed to the cool air of Damon's room. He skillfully undid the back with one hand while simultaneously blowing on her left nipple before taking it in his mouth.

"No fair,Elena moaned as Damon began alternating between sucking her left and right nipples.

Damon removed his mouth from her breast to reply 展hat's not fair kitten?"

"You're still fully clothed,she pouted and Damon couldn't resist but laugh a little.

"Why are you laughing?

"No worries, I was just thinking how adorable you are when you pout, he answered before giving her what she wanted and removed his black John Varvatos t shirt and carelessly tossing it to a random spot in his bedroom.

"Much better, she stated in satisfaction as she thanked him by slowly slipping her tongue inside his mouth once more than trailing it down his clavicle, neck, chest, and torso in slow, excruciating circles.

"Mmm... what are we going to do about these now Mr. Salvatore? Elena asked flirtatiously about his dark designer denim hugging low on his hips.

"I could ask you the exact same question Miss Gilbert.

Elena then smirked, surprising both herself and Damon before shimmying out of her jeans and then palming Damon's growing member through his denim making him groan.

"E-le-na,Damon barely got out in a groan.

"Is there a problem Damon?"

"Jeans... pain... please

Elena pressed herself up against Damon and moved slowly against him making him suffer a little before finally unbuttoning and unzipping his constricted jeans and pulling them down his toned lower body. It was only then she realized he had gone commando and noticed his size, suddenly becoming wary of upcoming events. Wary, but excited. She really should have been expecting this. It's not Damon is cocky without a good reason.

"See something you like?Damon inquired, noticing her in awe expression.

"Mmm... yes, surprisingly,she teased.

"Surprisingly? Oh, you are so going to pay for that kitten!

To make her 'pay', Damon first kissed her forcefully, requesting entrance quickly and would accept nothing else that dominance over her mouth. Once approved, he then began to slightly suck her lips, careful not to draw any blood and quickly moved on to lick down her body as she had done to him only minutes prior. When he arrived at the top of her lace hiphugger panties, he gripped the lace with his sharp teeth and pulled them clean off in a way that made Elena briefly wonder how many times he had to do that to be that skilled. The thought was fleeting, however, as a wave of pleasure began to overwhelm her when she felt two fingers inside her. He began to pump and replaced two fingers with three and eventually four. Elena never recalled being this wet before and this was an unexpected pleasure she welcomed.

"Damon, please!"

"Please, what, kitten?"

"Damonnn I need you inside me NOW

"Bossy I like it!Damon answered, while slowly sliding his length into her.

"I don't think it's going to fit!"

Damon laughed, unsure if she was serious or simply boosting his ego further. He decided she was most likely serious and as so, answered seriously.

"Yes it will Elena. Because me and you,we're a perfect fit. Your body was made for me as mine was made for you. Only you and only me. I've known this for a very long time and now I'm going to prove it to you,he whispered softly, yet firmly.

With one final push, he was completely inside her.

"Yes!she screamed, a combination of the intense pleasure she was feeling and even if she didn't believe it, his confession.

As he alternates between moving in and out of her slowly and moaning, they are oblivious to the third person who just walked in the door of the boarding house.


	3. Chapter 3

Title: The Mistake

Description: Stefan catches Elena and Damon in bed together and Elena immediately covers and tells Stefan it was a mistake. Does Elena really believe it was a mistake?

Disclaimer: I don't own it. I am just borrowing these characters because Nina Dobrev & Ian Somerhalder are such amazing muses :)

Spoilers? Nah, not really. I would rather call this.. foreshadowing ;)

A/N: THANK YOU to all of you who have added this story to your favorites/alerts and reviewed! They all make me want to write even more & update quickly yay! Also, I realize I didn't write at all in the first two chapters to review so.. please? Review? It makes my Vampire Diaries fanheart soar :) Thank you, I love you all *muah*

Chapter Three:

Stefan entered the house and immediately sensed there was a human heartbeat. 敵reat, it looks like Damon brought home a girl to no doubt feed from then drop her back in her dorm room with a headache, he thought, trying not focusing on the couple upstairs screaming 土esbetween moans and pants. He decided to step outside and call Elena to see what she was doing. Maybe they could go to the grill and he would no longer have to listen to the sounds of intense pleasure coming from upstairs. At the same time, he was kind of envious of his brother. He and Elena were completely in love with each other but when they made love, she had never made sounds like that... so passionate... so raw with emotion. If not for his pride, he would have probably asked Damon how he did that, not that he'd ever noticed it before today. He quickly disregarded any thoughts concerning Damon's lovemaking and dialed his girlfriend's phone number.

Meanwhile, upstairs, any thoughts of sadness or pain were obliterated in Elena's mind and replaced by the sheer satisfaction of having Damon on top of her while whispering in her ear, making her entire body tingle as they moved together. She would never admit it, but he was right, they were a perfect fit.

"D-D-Damon?

"Elena?he panted.

"Bite me.

"What?he asked, still inside her, but paused in shock.

Elena decided to take charge and wasn't sure exactly what came over her in this moment but she forcefully flipped them over. He allowed her, although they both knew he was much stronger and her action was only forceful on her part. She was now on top and began kissing him before biting his bottom lip, making him moan.

"You heard me.

The scent of his blood in the air combined with each of their scents made his self control nonexistent and had no choice but to give the girl what she wanted. He kissed her with as much passion as he could muster and bit her bottom lip, as she had his only moments ago. She couldn't restrain herself from bucking her hips and moaning as he sucked on her bottom lip before licking it a few moments later, allowing it to heal completely. He then used the space of his King size bed to roll them over so he was once again on top.

After licking the wound on her lip, he trailed his tongue in alternating zig zags and circles down her clavicle before reaching the left side of her neck. He began to suck and lick her neck while also trailing his fingers down her body, pausing to give her breasts a firm squeeze before slipping them inside her heat. Still inside her, he began pumping, alternating his fingers and length making her scream his name.

"Damon, now!"

With that,his face transformed, veins protruding underneath his eyes and fangs becoming sharp, and he bit where there was now a large love spot on her neck.

She screamed, initially from the pain of the bite, but the pain quickly came pleasure. He was now pleasuring her more ways she ever thought were possible.

Stefan walked back inside,only to meet the strong scent of human blood. He was about to walk out the door, feeling his self control slipping, before he recognized the scent. It had been over a year since Elena saved Stefan's life by offering her blood to him, but he remembered the scent as if it were yesterday.

He began to panic, knowing precisely what events were transpiring upstairs. 展hat if she doesn't have her necklace on? What if he compelled her? What if she's hurt? He's always threatened to make her his and torture me, but I never really thought he would do it. I foolishly thought he cared about her friendship, as well as ours. Stefan began silently screaming at himself for being stupid as he quietly climbed the stairs leading to Damon's bedroom.

The closer Stefan got to Damon's bedroom, the stronger the scent of blood became, accompanied by the screams of sheer satisfaction, not pain and fear as he had assumed. He was unsure which scenario he was hoping for.

Stefan arrived at the outside of Damon's bedroom door and had his hand firmly on the handle, ready to barge in, when he paused.

"Elena! I'm going to cum!

"Me too!

Damon picked up his pace and began pumping his entire length in and out of her at a speed she knew was inhuman as she forced her hips up to meet him halfway, their skin slapping together.

"Oh god! Yes! YES!Elena screamed as Damon kissed, pinched and rubbed any part of her body he could find her lips, her neck, her nipples, her ass, everything about her, he thought was perfect.

At last, Elena's body lost all self control as she convulsed and came as Damon did the same, spilling his warm seed into her.

They each sighed and Damon bit into his wrist, offering it to Elena. Without questioning, she accepted it, slowly drinking the metallic, yet surprisingly sweet substance.

After smelling more blood in a different scent, he could no longer stand it, he slowly opened the door, but was still stunned at what he saw, and even more, that neither of them seemed to notice his arrival.

Damon finally had to pull his wrist away, softly laughing, and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek before lightly spooning her, both of them facing away from the door. She was almost asleep as he rubbed small circles on her back.

"Mmm. Damon. That was wonderful... Thank you.

"You're welcome, Elena. I lo...he paused hearing... whimpering? In his bedroom? Oh no. God no. Please let it be a puppy Stefan nearly drained. Please.

Elena laid in shock hearing the beginning, and then a pause of the confession Damon was obviously about to make. 泥amon. Why did you stop? she asked, feeling Damon softly poking her in the back. She began to roll over and once she realized why Damon stopped, she gasped, seeing Stefan crying in Damon's doorway, watching as his brother spooned his girlfriend.


	4. Chapter 4

Title: The Mistake

Description: Stefan catches Elena and Damon in bed together and Elena immediately covers and tells Stefan it was a mistake. Does Elena really believe it was a mistake?

Disclaimer: I don't own it. I am just borrowing these characters because Nina Dobrev & Ian Somerhalder are such amazing muses :)

Spoilers? Nah, not really. I would rather call this.. foreshadowing ;)

A/N: THANK YOU to all of you who have added this story to your favorites/alerts and reviewed! They all make me want to write even more & update quickly – yay! Review? It makes my Vampire Diaries fanheart soar :) Thank you, I love you all *muah*

Chapter Four:

Stefan knew he was always the more sensitive of the Salvatore brothers but never imagined he would ever have to be seen crying by Damon as well as Elena. He felt his pride slipping away but in that moment, he couldn't care less. He had decided he did wish Damon had compelled her. That way this had no meaning. It would be just Damon getting what he needed and Stefan could've accepted that, in a twisted way, because deep down, he knew Damon wouldn't hurt Elena. However, Stefan saw Elena's necklace around her flushed neck and knew, his world just shattered.

He felt his face becoming wet with tears as he watched them together. They were both completely oblivious to the fact he was in the house, yet alone the room. This hurt just as much, if not more, than the act itself, but only because he knew the only way vampires missed what was going on was if their attention was one hundred percent on one other thing only. He was like that with Elena sometimes, just being with her and looking at her, a bomb could go off ten feet from him and he wouldn't even notice. He recognized this feeling as love love ago, but never thought he would witness it coming from Damon.

Stefan was listening as he heard his brother say "You're welcome, Elena I lo..." and couldn't hold it in any longer. He knew Damon would hear him and their secret would be discovered in the next few seconds. He was prepared to yell at his brother, to make him feel sorry, to rescue Elena. What Stefan was expecting to see when Damon flipped over to look at his brother was a sense of pride, accomplishment; Instead, he looked in his brother's eyes and saw sadness and guilt. Damon held eye contact only long enough for Stefan to see that before dropping his head and eyes in shame. Stefan had no idea his brother was even capable of feeling guilt or shame, yet alone having enough pride to let him see it. It's because he loves Elena, no, he's IN love with Elena; there's a difference. His brother is in love with his girlfriend; he knew he had lost. How was Stefan going to compete with Damon? As he came to this realization, Stefan ran out of the room.

Elena knew she should be feeling so many things right now – guilt, shame, sad, depression, etc but she didn't. She was happy, satisfied, elated even as she faced the window of the eldest Salvatore brother, him spooning her from behind. She knew Damon had slept with hundreds, probably even thousands of girls during his life (and undead life) but this felt different to her somehow. Was Isobel right last year when she told Elena that Damon was in love with her? That didn't seem to explain very much though; Stefan is in love with her and she never had this feeling when they made love. Elena's thoughts were interrupted by Damon speaking and she could've sworn he was going to confess he was in love with her before he abruptly stopped. WHY? Why did she even care? Despite denying any reason she should or shouldn't care, she asked him why he stopped but instead of a verbal response, she received pokes in the back instead. "What the hell?" she thought while rolling to her other side to question Damon.

Her question was answered, however, before she had time to ask Damon. "Stefan," came out as only a soft whisper, being capable of no more, in fear that her voice would break. When she saw tears in her boyfriend's eyes, she immediately felt tears begin to crawl down her face also. What had she done? She could no longer control the amount of tears and had soaked her face and neck. She glanced over at Damon and noticed he wasn't even looking at Stefan- his face was down in shame. If anything, this made her feel even worse. If Damon was taunting Stefan, bragging about sleeping with his girlfriend or something similar, it would be so much easier for Elena. But, it seems that was not the case at all. When she glanced back to Stefan, he was gone. "Damn vampire speed!" She had made up her mind what she had to do.

"STEFAN!" Elena yelled for him, while getting out of Damon's bed and finding the first thing she could to wear, Damon's shirt, which was long enough to nearly hit her knees. "STEFAN! STEFAN,WHERE ARE YOU? PLEASE. STEFAN!"

"Elena."

Elena heard her name coming from the living room and turned around to see Stefan sitting on the ground, in front of the fire. She went to sit next to him and noticed two glasses: one half full of whiskey and one nearly empty of blood.

"Is that..."

"Animal blood, yes. There's no reason to worry about me Elena, I'm fine."

"Stefan, you're not fine. I know you aren't. I am a horrible, horrible girlfriend and an even more horrible person. You don't deserve this and I'm so sorry you had to see that."

"Elena, you could never be a horrible person."

"See, even now you're nice to me. Why? You need to be yelling at me, screaming at me, something!"

"No Elena. You can't help who you fall in love with. And you certainly can't help who falls in love with you. You are an incredible person Elena Gilbert, and only a fool would not fall in love with you. I don't blame either of you."

Damon wasn't planning on listening to the conversation going on downstairs between his brother and Elena but, hell, this was who he was, why would he not listen? So he did. And Damon was shocked by what he heard – his brother giving up. He wasn't upset, he wasn't mad, he was... accepting. Damon wished he would yell too. Maybe not at Elena since it wasn't her fault, but he should definitely come upstairs and yell at him, hit him a bit, maybe even stake him in the leg or something. He didn't want to be staked anywhere near the heart, too scary, but the leg, that seems like a suitable enough punishment. Wasn't Stefan, the saint, in love with Elena? Did he not worship the ground she walks on? Does his undead heart not beat for her alone? Then WHY wasn't he fighting for her? Interrupting his thoughts was something that he was sure, if his heart had been beating, it would have just stopped.

"Stefan, what are you talking about? Love? I'm in love with YOU, Stefan, you. I am sooo sorry, Stefan. It was a mistake. I wish I could take it back. Please, let me explain?"

Stefan saw the tears building up in Elena's eyes again and knew he couldn't resist her. He would let her explain, because he was in love with her. He knew she would never do anything to intentionally hurt him. So, he did the first thing that came to his mind, he wrapped his arms around her and told her everything was going to be alright.

Damon sat upstairs brokenhearted, something he didn't even think was possible anymore, as Elena explained to Stefan everything that had happened in the past week. It broke his heart even more to hear Elena begin to cry as she told Stefan about Jenna and then how she came to the boarding house looking for him, only to find Damon. "Lucky me."

After finishing her explanation, Stefan had looks of sadness and remorse in his eyes. "I'm so sorry about Aunt Jenna, Elena. I know how close the two of you were. I'm also sorry I wasn't here when you needed me. I understand that you needed to talk to someone, and Damon was that someone. Don't get me wrong, I wish it wasn't, but he was there for you when I wasn't and he would never hurt you, for that I am grateful. What I don't understand Elena, is why you slept with him. I can understand a hug, and even a kiss, as hard as that is to understand, but why? Why did you sleep with him? And why would you exchange blood with him? That is something extremely personal and only done when two people have an extremely strong bond, a bond of love."

"I honestly don't know. I think it was just one of those things, you know? Where you need someone... close.. to you. I needed to be comforted and like you said, you weren't there and Damon was. As far as the blood goes, I think I just got lost in the moment. I wanted to forget about losing Jenna, about all my pain, everything, and at the time, the blood exchange seemed like the best idea. I know it was a mistake and I'm sorry Stefan. I just want everything back to normal, what can I do? Please, Stefan, I'll do anything."

"It's okay, Elena. I forgive you. I love you too. I only ask one thing though. Do you think you could... stay away... from Damon? At least for a while? Give him time to get over whatever feelings he may think he's having for you? Then everything will be as it should."

Elena's face showed an emotion as if she was physically in pain to what Stefan was asking of her before she responded, "Yes."


	5. Chapter 5

Title: The Mistake

Description: Stefan catches Elena and Damon in bed together and Elena immediately covers and tells Stefan it was a mistake. Does Elena really believe it was a mistake?

Disclaimer: I don't own it. I am just borrowing these characters because Nina Dobrev & Ian Somerhalder are such amazing muses :)

Spoilers? Nah, not really. I would rather call this.. foreshadowing ;)

A/N: THANK YOU to all of you who have added this story to your favorites/alerts and reviewed! They all make me want to write even more & update quickly – yay! Review? It makes my Vampire Diaries fanheart soar :) Thank you, I love you all *muah*

**Chapter Five:**

The second Elena agreed to Stefan's request, she got an odd feeling deep in her stomach that she couldn't explain. She chose to ignore it though, because of how she felt about Stefan. There were certain sacrifices that had to be made, right?

This is precisely what Elena told herself for the next few weeks. Each time she went to visit Stefan, she made a point to completely avoid Damon. The first few times seeing him, he would greet her but she wouldn't respond. Time number five, she made the mistake of looking back towards him and saw the hurt look on his face – his eyes were looking towards the ground, his lips in a tight line shaped into a slight frown, and it broke Elena's heart to see him like that. From that point on, every time Elena went to the boarding house, Damon either didn't speak to her or wasn't there at all.

Three weeks later, Elena was wrapped in Stefan's arms watching a movie at the boarding house when Damon walked in the front door. Elena refused to even look at him, in fear o what she would find and instantly tensed at the thought.

"Elena, is everything okay?"

"Everything is fine Stefan. Let's just finish the movie, okay?"

"Okay."

… a few minutes later …

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"_Yes_, Stefan. Please, just drop it."

"... Is it Damon?"

"Stefan."

"It's just... I know how my brother is Elena. Has he been bothering you? Have you talked to him?"

"I told you to drop it Stefan. Please."

"Elena, I could feel you tense up when he came in the door just now. And now that I think about it, that has happened every single time he has come in the room when you've been over lately."

"He hasn't talked to me Stefan. So no, he hasn't 'bothered' me. You, however, are. So I think I'm just going to leave."

"Aren't we going to finish the movie?"

"No."

"Elena, please."

"Stefan, no, I'm leaving."

Elena gathered her things and walked towards the door, knowing if she ran, he would easily catch up to her using his vampire speed and she just didn't feel like talking to Stefan right now. However, as soon as she was outside, she made a dash towards the SUV and began to quickly back out of the driveway. Sure enough, when she looked a few seconds later, Stefan was standing on the front porch, watching her leave.

The first thing Stefan heard when he stepped back inside was Damon.

"Oh, brother."

"What do you want Damon?"

"Me? Oh I don't want anything. I'm just here to offer you some of my brotherly advice. You know Stefan, that's what brothers do."

"Damon, leave me alone."

"Sheesh, I'm just trying to help you out."

"I don't need your help."

"It didn't seem that way to me."

Stefan walked out of the room before he lost his temper with his brother and the last thing he heard was something about pushing Elena away. Whatever. Damon didn't know anything. He wasn't pushing Elena away and even if he was, there was no way he was taking advice from Damon, who just wanted to take Elena away from him.

Elena pulled into her driveway, silently wishing Stefan would not be there waiting for her, or come at all actually. She loved him, she did, but she wasn't sure how much more she could take of his jealousy and insecurity when it came to Damon. He asked her to stop talking to him. She did. What else did he want?

Upon reaching her bedroom, she retrieved her diary from behind the artwork above her bed and grabbed a pen off her desk then sat on her window seal to write.

_Dear Diary,_

_Sorry I haven't written in a while. A lot has happened lately and my life has been crazy. Let me start from the beginning. It all started seven weeks ago, the first week of June. It still hurts to think about it too much so I'll keep this short. Aunt Jenna died. For five days, I did nothing but cry and sleep. I hardly ate, I didn't hang out with friends, I didn't even shower._

_When I finally decided I was ready to talk to someone, I drove over to the boarding house to talk to Stefan but Damon was there instead. He answered the door in a TOWEL. A towel! Diary, don't judge me because I was really upset and clearly not thinking straight because one thing led to another and well... I slept with him. Yes, Damon Salvatore. No, I am not completely out of my mind... I don't think. Anyways, Stefan came home from hunting and caught us in bed together. I chased after him, crying, and apologized then explained what happened with Jenna. He forgave me easily, of course, didn't even yell, which just made me feel even more guilty. He made me promise not to talk to Damon anymore and I agreed because I love him and don't want to lose him._

_I have now been avoiding Damon for five weeks and it was going... fine... until I was over there today. Damon came home and Stefan could sense it when I tensed up and we got into a fight. Diary, I don't know what to do. I mean, I love Stefan. But... I can't deny I feel something for Damon too. Seeing him hurt like this hurts me. It breaks my heart to see him in pain and I know I've hurt him. He doesn't deserve this. What do I do? Please help me to figure this out._

_- Elena_

As Elena placed her diary back into it's hiding spot, she turned around to face none other than the one and only Damon Salvatore.


	6. Chapter 6

Title: The Mistake

Description: Stefan catches Elena and Damon in bed together and Elena immediately covers and tells Stefan it was a mistake. Does Elena really believe it was a mistake?

Disclaimer: I don't own it. I am just borrowing these characters because Nina Dobrev & Ian Somerhalder are such amazing muses :)

Spoilers? Nah, not really. I would rather call this.. foreshadowing ;)

A/N: THANK YOU to all of you who have added this story to your favorites/alerts and reviewed! They all make me want to write even more & update quickly – yay! Review? It makes my Vampire Diaries fanheart soar :) Thank you, I love you all *muah*

**Chapter Six:**

"Damon," Elena acknowledged, no longer being surprised by the vampire's tendency to appear out of nowhere.

"Elena."

"What are you doing here?"

"I heard the fight you had with Stefan and since it was about me, I thought it was necessary to find out why."

"It wasn't about you."

"Elena. Vampire hearing, remember? Or do you need me to show you my fangs?" he replied, smirking. "Don't lie to me. I know you've been avoiding me. Talk to me."

"Damon, there's nothing to tell you. Really. Now please, just leave."

"Elena," he growled, causing her to back up slowly before falling backwards onto her bed.

Damon could sense something was wrong but he had no idea what it was. "Elena, I'm not going to hurt you."

"I know that."

He walks around her room and approaches the opposite side of the bed that she's on and sits down beside her, grabbing the teddy bear laying there and placing it into his lap. "Then please, just tell me what's going on. We slept together and I get that you regret that, and I'm sorry, but I thought we were friends, Elena," he said in a sarcastic tone, trying to mask the fact that he was hurt.

"Damon, that's not it. You don't get it."

"Damn it Elena, explain it to me!"

She sighs, knowing that this, talking to him now, is going to change things somehow. "I don't regret what happened that day, Damon," She paused to look at him, a semi-shocked expression on his face. This was clearly not what he was expecting her to say. "We are... friends. At least, I think we are. Or were." He continues to look her in the eyes with a blank stare so she continues. "After Stefan caught us, I felt guilty, not because I regretted it, but because it hurt him. I never want to hurt either of you. I don't want to be like... her. It just isn't fair to either of you. So when I explained what happened to Stefan, he asked me if I would stay away from you and stop talking to you. I thought it would be better, easier, so I said yes."

At this confession, Damon now has a look of anger on his face and in a way, Elena has never been more afraid of him. "Stefan did WHAT? Why? Why would you say yes? Is that why you've been ignoring me? All these weeks? Because Stefan** told** you to?"

"He did it because he didn't want to lose me. I said yes because I didn't want to hurt either of you. I thought by taking myself out of the equation, you would be better off. Stefan is in love with me. By saying yes, I didn't have to hurt him. So yes, I ignored you because he asked me to."

Damon was unsure what came over him in the next moment as he replied "What makes you think Stefan is the only one in love with you?"

Slowly, Elena lifted her eyes to his and saw that the look of honesty and pain in the bright blue orbs. It was too much for her to take and she felt tears beginning to fall down her flawless face.

Unable to resist comforting her, Damon took her face in his hands and wiped away her tears with his thumbs in gentle circles. "Please, don't cry, Elena. Stefan was right. I'm not worth crying over."

This only made her cry harder. "Damon, you're such an idiot! Don't you see? You are worth it. That's why I'm such a horrible person. I've treated Stefan like dirt. I've treated you like dirt. And all either one of you is comfort me. I've lead both of you on. I'm a horrible girlfriend and friend. I'm just like her, Damon. You should hate me. Why don't you hate me?"

"Silly girl. You have a warped sense of horrible, obviously. Stefan and I are vampires. We are predators. We've killed people, especially me. And here you are crying over us." He chuckles. "Saying you're a horrible person. You, Elena, are not horrible in any way. Silly girl. I don't hate you because I love you. Hell, I love you more than I've ever loved anyone, human or vampire."

Elena knew by saying human or vampire, he was confessing he loved her more than he had ever loved Katherine and she didn't know how this made her feel. Katherine had hurt him so badly. Elena had been there through that and she saw how badly he was hurt and here he was telling her she was capable of hurting him even worse? She felt her heart break a little at the thought.

"Oh, and don't EVER compare yourself to Katherine. You are not, and will never be anything like that bitch. So please, don't tell yourself you are like her. Anyone who compares the two of you are completely insane and should be slapped afterwards," Damon finished.

"Damon, what am I going to do?" Elena asked, getting the irony of asking her diary that same question a few minutes prior.

"If I ask you something, can you answer me honestly?"

"Of course, but only if I get to ask you something first to which you answer honestly."

"Ah, okay. Shoot."

"You said you love me."

"I did. That wasn't a question."

"Do you only love me because you are trying to get revenge on Stefan for Katherine?"

"No. When I first came to Mystic Falls, I admit, making Stefan's life hell was my objective. I wanted to... get... you to make him feel sorry for what he did. That had nothing to do with love, Elena. Once Stefan gave you that vervain necklace, and I discovered you couldn't be compelled, I stopped trying to get you to kiss me. Yes, flirting with you irritated Stefan, but that was just fun, to see your reactions. As time passed, it stopped being about irritating Stefan, and more about you. I didn't mean for it to happen, trust me."

"I do," she replied, smiling.

He returned her smile before beginning "So, my turn now?"

She nods.

"How do you feel about me?"

A blank stare arrives as she is shocked by the question. She knew she shouldn't be shocked, but she is. He was so honest and open with her. Does she even know what she feels for him? Oh, God, what was she going to tell him?

"Elena?"

"I-I-I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"No."

He leans forward and surprisingly, she doesn't push him away, so he slowly and gently places a soft kiss on her lips. The kiss is completely opposite of everything Damon is in everyone else's eyes and even in the tenderness, Elena can feel the passion and her heartbeat becomes rapid.

"How about now?"

"I'm sorry, Damon. I don't know."

"Elena, Elena, Elena. Let me make this a little easier for you. I can hear your heartbeat racing. Every time I get close to you, touch you, kiss you, it becomes rapid. You feel something for me, I know it."

"Yes."

For the moment, this was enough for him so he did the one thing he knew would affect her the most right now. He placed one hand on her lower back and one on the back of her head and pulled her to him swiftly, making her gasp slightly, before putting her mouth to his. If she didn't know how she felt for him, he was going to make her realize it.

She was shocked at first, not expecting him to kiss her like that. It made her miss a beat and she knew, he was right. It wasn't long before she relaxed into the kiss, enjoying the feeling of them molding together. It amazed her that such a simple act could become so intimate. She could feel every ounce of his love for her as he kissed her and couldn't help but wonder... was she in love with him too?

**Review please! :)**


	7. Chapter 7

Title: The Mistake

Description: Stefan catches Elena and Damon in bed together and Elena immediately covers and tells Stefan it was a mistake. Does Elena really believe it was a mistake?

Disclaimer: I don't own it. I am just borrowing these characters because Nina Dobrev & Ian Somerhalder are such amazing muses :)

Spoilers? Nah, not really. I would rather call this.. foreshadowing ;)

A/N: I broke my own rule with this chapter. I have made it a habit of making every chapter over 1,000 words but I wanted this one to be a chapter on it's own since I have big plans for where to begin the next one :)

**Chapter Seven:**

What seemed like hours later, they separated, hesitatingly. Even after they separated, Elena's eyes remained closed, in fear of the emotions she would find when their eyes met again. When she finally opened her eyes, he was gone.

"Damn him."

It was then she noticed a handwritten note on her nightstand. She picked up the calligraphy written note and read it to herself.

_My dearest Elena,_

_You may not be sure about your feelings for me, but I am. Even you cannot deny what happened when I kissed you just now. I know you're in love with Stefan; Believe me, I know. I know this must be incredibly hard on you and for that I am truly sorry._

_I don't regret falling in love with you. I may have not meant for it to happen, but it did. Somehow, you've helped me find my humanity, which, by the way, if you ever tell anyone that, you will have to be punished. ;) I can't have my reputation of being the bad ass brother ruined, now can I?_

_On to a more serious note though – you need to make a choice Elena. I can honestly say that the day you came over and we slept together was the best day of my entire life. It kills me (no pun intended) to see you with my brother everyday and so I just need it to be over. If you truly love Stefan and choose him, I will completely understand and leave town, never to return. However, if you choose myself and realize as I have that I can make you happier than you have ever been, follow the clue below tomorrow morning and it will lead you to me._

_I don't want this to be a rash decision for you. Sleep on it and decide in the morning. I will be waiting._

_Sweet Dreams, Elena_

_Love,_

_Damon_

Elena's eyes began to water as she placed the note underneath her pillow, willing for it to give her answers as she slept before allowing her head to fall back and fell into a deep sleep.

**Review, Review, Review! :D**


	8. Chapter 8

Title: The Mistake

Description: Stefan catches Elena and Damon in bed together and Elena immediately covers and tells Stefan it was a mistake. Does Elena really believe it was a mistake?

Disclaimer: I don't own it. I am just borrowing these characters because Nina Dobrev & Ian Somerhalder are such amazing muses :)

Spoilers? Nah, not really. I would rather call this.. foreshadowing ;)

A/N: I LOVE all of you for the massive amounts of emails in my inbox! They make me want to write faster! Keep it up and don't forget to Review Review Review! * muah *

**Chapter Eight:**

When Elena woke up the next morning, the first thing she saw was unfamiliar surroundings. Looking around, she couldn't find anything in her bedroom that she recognized.

"Where am I? The last thing I remember was falling asleep after reading Damon's note," Elena thought.

Suddenly remembering, Elena decided to check underneath her pillow to see if the note was where she left it the night before. It was there; The only difference being it no longer looked newly written, it now had an sense of age as if it had been underneath that pillow for years.

"Weird."

Finally awake enough to observe her surroundings, Elena noticed the room she was in was oddly similar to both a room in the boarding house and her house. It was big and spacious, with early 1900s detailing but also had a touch of a country homey feel. Deciding to get out of the queen size bed, Elena noticed for the first time what she was wearing: a black, lace trimmed teddy.

Elena's thoughts instantly went into overdrive. "What the hell? I can somewhat understand waking up in a room I don't recognize; It's not like it hasn't happened before. However, I know for a fact this is not what I went to sleep in. I don't even own this."

Instantly becoming very aware that someone else changed her clothes and put her in this made Elena's stomach turn. She began to think of all the various scenarios that could have possibly happened this time. Had she been kidnapped by a vampire? Was it someone Katherine knew? Stefan? Damon? Was she in danger? What did they want with her? And why would they take the time to remove the note from Damon from underneath her pillow at home and replace it here? None of this made any sense. She didn't appear to be hurt in any way, but she was extremely hungry. How long had it been since she'd last eaten? It felt like weeks.

There was a sudden scent in the air that smelled delicious and Elena wondered if whoever had kidnapped her had made breakfast (which seemed crazy, and yet, she could smell it). Not having many other options at the moment, she decided to go with it. Seeing double doors on the opposite side of the bedroom, she opened them to find the biggest, most fabulous closet she had ever seen in her entire life.

Stepping inside the closet made Elena feel the way she did before her parents died and she loved nothing more than shopping for beautiful designer clothes, shoes, and handbags. This is what she imagined Heaven looked like, all white with a faint glow. Each side of the closet was lined with gorgeous clothes, sorted by color, so it looked like a rainbow. In the center stood a full length mirror and a little further down there was a rotating stand with a glass top and glass drawers. Seeing a remote control on top, Elena grabbed it and pressed the stop button. Glancing inside, she couldn't believe what she saw. There must have been a half million dollars worth of diamonds, pearls, and various gemstones inside. She didn't dare touch any, but couldn't resist staring for a few minutes. Finally pulling herself away from the jewelry, Elena continued to the back of the closet where the entire left side was lined with beautiful handbags and the right side was full of shoes. Just in a glance, she noticed Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Prada, Chanel, and Manolo Blahnik labels.

Becoming anxious to go downstairs where she was now certain now harm, but a delicious breakfast awaited her, Elena chose a few items from the closet, sans jewelry, and got dressed. Being as hungry as she was, she didn't bother with makeup.

Ten minutes later, Elena emerged from the closet and exited the bedroom to head to the kitchen. The house was quite large and was decorated much like the bedroom but had a definite masculine feel mixed in with the feminine that looked like something Elena would love for herself. If not for the strong, delicious smell coming from the kitchen, Elena wasn't sure she would have been able to find the kitchen until an hour later. Luckily, the scent drew her in and she soon walked into the lavish marble floored room, shocked at what she saw.

"Hello, Elena. It's about time you got up. Sleepyhead. Did you sleep well?"

"Damon?"

"Yesss..."

"What are you doing here?"

"Is there somewhere else I need to be?"

"How would I know?"

"Ummm... okay. Well, since I'm home, I think I'll just stay here, if that's okay with you," he replied with his signature smirk.

Elena begins thinking to herself, "So Damon lives here. That makes sense, with all the lavish designs and expensive items. What am I doing here though? And where's Stefan?" She realizes she must have taken too long to respond because when she looked at Damon, he had a blank stare on his face as if asking her what was going on.

"I should go," she decided to say, flustered and slightly embarrassed to be in Damon's home.

"Now? I didn't think you were going shopping until later. Sit down, have some breakfast. Unless... did I do something? Are you upset with me? Is that why you're in such a hurry to leave?"

If Elena was confused before, she had no idea what she was now. How would Damon know anything about her shopping habits? Why was he worried about whether or not she was upset with him?

"What?"

"Elena. Sit," Damon says, pointing to an empty bar-stool. "Is everything okay? Are you feeling alright?" he continues, sliding a wine glass filled with blood over to her.

"Blood?"

"Yess... of course. What else would you prefer?"

"OMG YOU TURNED ME."

"Elena, you're really beginning to scare me now. Me turning you is kind of old news now. Why do you sound so surprised? And why do you sound angry with me? Please, Elena, talk to me."

"When I woke up today, I didn't know where I was."

"What?"

"I don't recognize this house, Damon. I don't know why you're here. I don't know why I'm here. I don't remember ever being turned."

He looked at her, an expression of shock and horror on his handsome face. "Elena, we live here. We moved here about six months ago from the boarding house where we lived together for over a year. We've been together for two years. After dating for 6 months, we started to discuss the topic of you turning. Two months later, it was done. You really don't remember any of this?"

She begins to cry. "No."

Damon walks over to Elena as she stands up and he pulls her into his arms. "It's going to be okay, Elena. We'll figure this out together," he speaks softly to try to comfort her then kisses her on the forehead. "I love you, we'll figure this out, I swear."

"I know, Damon. I love you too," she replied, without knowing exactly why the words came so naturally to her.

Damon leans down to gently kiss her forehead once again and then places a soft peck on her lips before everything went black.

**Sooooo... what do YOU think? Any theories? I want to hear them! You know what to do! Press that little button below and let me know! 3**


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I loveddd all the guesses! There were a few I wish I would have thought of myself. For example, Vuvuzela's guess of the ghost from the future and badboysarebest's guess of the enchanted note, which I particularly enjoyed. After reading this chapter, many of you will think you got it 100% right, but really, you were only close :) That's a secret though... one to be revealed in the sequel ;) Also, sorry about the length of this chapter. I planned a longer one but I had a request to publish ASAP and this is what I had :) Anyways, as always, Review!

**Chapter Nine:**

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP

Elena awoke with a start by the annoying beeping of her alarm clock. Glancing around the bedroom, everything looked familiar, as in, she knew she lived here.

"What an odd dream," she thought.

Suddenly recalling the dream, she knew what she had to do. Picking up her cell phone, she sent a text to Stefan telling him to meet her at The Grill in fifteen minutes. This wasn't something she could procrastinate on so she got dressed as quickly as possible in a pair of jeans, black t-shirt, and her favorite sneakers and ran out the door.

Opening the door to the grill ten minutes later, Elena saw Stefan already there and silently thanked God for vampire hearing and speed.

"Elena," he greeted her, standing up to kiss her on the cheek and pull out her chair. He always had to be the gentleman.

"Hey Stefan. Thanks for meeting me this early."

"I'd meet you anytime, Elena."

Elena silently groaned "This is only going to make things harder!"

"The thank you still applies."

He nods.

"Anyways, Stefan. There was a reason I wanted to meet you. I just want you to promise me something. Promise me you won't get mad. I need you to SWEAR you won't lose your temper with anyone. Can you do that?"

Stefan hesitates, as if thinking of all the possible things she is going to tell him in his head before finally responding, "Yes. I promise and swear."

He already had a pained look on his face, as if he knew what was coming and was prepared. She decided to just get it over with. "The truth is Stefan, I've been thinking about things a lot lately. Ever since Jeremy left and Jenna died, I've been really sad. You've helped me a lot to not be so sad. So has Damon."

Stefan tenses, but let's her continue.

"I know I hurt you when I slept with Damon and want me to regret it, but I don't, Stefan. For a long time, I wished I did. When you told me to stay away from him, I did it for you because I loved... love you. I thought by..."

"Loved?"

"Please, just let me finish, Stefan, okay?"

He nods again.

"I thought by staying away from Damon, I would protect both him and you from being hurt. The last thing in this world I want is to hurt either of you. I hope you believe that. I need you to believe that."

"I know."

"Good. However, by protecting the both of you, I realized I was hurting myself. It literally **hurt** me Stefan, to stay away from Damon."

Gaining the courage to look in his eyes, Elena saw a look of realization in Stefan's face.

"You're in love with him."

"I know it seems crazy, insane, stupid, impossibly so, but yes. When I imagine my future, who I want to spend the rest of eternity with, it's Damon. All these months, Stefan, you have no idea how much I wanted it to be you."

"Eternity?"

"It's not something we've talked about," she states simply, again remembering her dream.

"So, this is it? We're through?"

"Stefan, I don't want us to be through all together. You are a very important part of my life. And Damon's. I don't want this to drive more of a wedge between the two of you. Maybe not immediately, but promise me one more thing... one day, we'll be able to be friends. All of us. Comfortably."

"I don't know if I can promise that Elena. Not definitely. But I will promise to try. I truly will."

"Thank you, Stefan," she replies, standing up and giving him an awkward hug before heading out the door to her SUV.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Don't hate me! Wait, maybe that should go at the end. Anyways, this story is FINISHED! Yayyyy. It's so funny how I just had this idea pop into my head one day and it was intended to be a 1-2 chapter story but it kind of had a mind of it's own! I have an idea for a sequel that I will be starting ASAP. Like, tomorrow. No joke. Review please! And THANK YOU to all of you who have reviewed/favorited/requested alerts! I love you all *muah*

**Chapter Ten:**

Back at home, Elena ran upstairs as fast as she could to get ready for the day. She quickly took a shower, changed clothes, fixed her hair, and did her makeup before going to retrieve the note from Damon which was still underneath her pillow.

_Clue One: Go to the place we first "met" Hint: In order for this to work out time wise, you should probably start no later than 10 am._

Elena looked at her phone for the time. 9:45. Perfect. She left the house not exactly sure where she was heading exactly. She remembered meeting Damon in the boarding house but his hint made it seem as though that wasn't their first meeting. Soon after, she remembered the fog and bird in the graveyard that first day of school. With a destination in mind, Elena began to wonder what this day had in store for her.

Arriving at the graveyard, Elena walked to her parent's grave to find a dozen red roses. When she picked them up, she noticed the note inside.

_Dearest Elena,_

_Thank you for coming. You really have no idea how much it means to me (but you will *winks*) I'm anxious to see you so there won't be very many clues, but I've always wanted to do a scavenger hunt, so .. ta da! Your next clue is this: Go to the place your worst nightmare took place (Trust me)._

_J'aime Tu,_

_Damon_

Elena smiled and thought to herself "Of course, he would know how to say I love you in french."

Before leaving, she talked to her parents for a few minutes and then left to go to Wickory Bridge. This place had a lot of bad memories for her and although she trusted Damon, she had an uneasy feeling having to go back there.

As Wickory Bridge became closer and closer, Elena's anxiety about being there melted away. Someone had written quite large with sidewalk chalk.

_Elena Gilbert,_

_You mean everything to me and if I could give you the world, I would. However, this is the best I could come up with for now. I know this location holds a horrible memory for you so I wanted to give you a good one. Your next clue is: Go to the place I first kissed you (think hard... it took place before the time you are likely thinking of.)_

_Ti amo,_

_Damon_

"Italian. Naturally. Well, he is Italian," Elena becomes lost in thought and barely notices as there is a slight breeze and suddenly an object laying in front of her feet. She bends over to pick it up and feels a tear fall down her face. It was a custom made snow globe with a man handing a woman a sphere replicating the earth. The outside of it was engraved: ti amerò per sempre, bella Elena. After meeting the Salvatore brothers, Elena did a little research of the Italian language and knew the encryption read I will love you forever, beautiful Elena.

Attempting to think back to where Damon first kissed her, Elena was having trouble until she thought about the first time they met. Back then, she thought he was just the hot, charming older brother of Stefan. Before she left that day, he kissed her hand. Even then, her heart jumped at his touch. At that point, Elena practically ran all the way to the boarding house, just knowing this had to be the last location.

Reaching the front door, she didn't bother knocking, but instead walked straight inside. She felt weird coming in for Damon when only days prior she came to this house to visit Stefan instead. Even though Stefan lived there too, Elena had the feeling he wouldn't be there anytime today. She walked into the large living area and in the exact spot Damon first kissed her hand, Elena saw a beautifully wrapped gift. It was perhaps the most beautiful packaging she had ever seen: Metallic red paper filled with gold fleur de lis designs complete with a gold bow adorned on top. It was silly, but Elena couldn't resist taking out her cell phone and snapping a photo of the gift.

Knowing Damon was most likely watching her and trying not to give away his location by laughing, she made her way over to the gift and opened it carefully. After opening the box, the first thing she saw was a card that had a single red rose on it. She opened it and read: Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir? Not quite being sure if he was purposely using a line from a movie about prostitutes, Elena swallowed before continuing to unwrap her gift. Lifting the tissue paper, she found a box of chocolates then gasped. Underneath the chocolates was a black, lace trimmed teddy.


	11. Chapter 11

Okay everyone, this is not a story update, because "The Mistake" is completed... obviously. I have been debating for a while whether I was going to post this or not. However, it has gotten to the point where I don't think I have a choice.

I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings or anything by this note. I really hope I don't... but it's just a warning because I don't like that I have to have an author's note as a chapter for this. Anyways, here we go.

I LOVE Reviews. I just want to tell all of you that right now. Each time I get an email saying I have a new review, it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. However, since this story has been completed nearly every, single review has been to Update the story.

THE SEQUEL IS POSTED. As a matter of fact, I started it on August 12. By the way, that is the same day I finished this story. In my A/N for Chapter 10, I put that I was working on a sequel and would be up extremely soon. That should have been the first clue to check for a new story.

Also, if anyone reads my profile, the sequel is posted there and in the description it says "Sequel of The Mistake"

On an unrelated note, I get a lot of reviews correcting my french. I had it set to what a lot of you say it is but got a lot of reviews a while ago to change it. So I did. There are lots of different ways of saying I love you in French and yes, I accidentally changed from formal to informal, but everything else is fine.

I'm really glad you all liked this story and hope you head on over to "Serendipity" and read that now :) It isn't finished but I am working on it. (PS... I'm going to keep this A/N up forever so depending on when you read this, it might be finished).

Anyways, you have a lot to go read, so I'm going to stop blabbering on ;) Again, I hope I didn't hurt anyone's feelings but I just wanted to make sure everyone knew about the sequel (even though I don't see why you don't now...)

3 Kristin


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